The Curse of Beauty
by Mirage1234
Summary: Shadepetal is beautiful. There's no denying that. Toms from all four of the Clans seem to fall for her at first sight. Many she-cats would kill for that kind of attention, but to Shadepetal, it's a curse. You see, Shadepetal is in love with her best friend… and her best friend is a she-cat.
1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note: Finally, my return to fanfiction!**

**Anyway, I'm back with a slightly experimental fanfic. It's based around the romance genre, though there's gonna be some hinted dark violence and maybe some sexual scenes, if you know what I mean. To be perfectly honest, I'm not too much of a fan of crack pairings, but I decided I wanted to have a go at writing a romantic story around a slash pairing between two she-cats. So yeah.**

**Summary says all.**

**Hope you enjoy it!**

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**The Curse of Beauty: (Chapter One)**

A gentle breeze blew through the forest, rustling the branches of the trees. It was sun high. There were no clouds to smother the light of the sun, so it was blistering hot. An ageing oak tree stood in the middle of a clearing: it cast a shadow over all the other trees nearby. It was highest point in the whole forest. From the ground, it seemed as if the tree was touching the sky. This was the Ancient Oak.

A cat sat on the highest branch of the tree. She stared straight forward, completely silent. It was female, quite a young one at that. The she-cat had only become a warrior a moon ago. She sighed a little, before unsheathing her claws and digging them into the bark of the tree. She let her mind wonder. _I wonder what's happening back at camp. _She mused. _All the toms are probably going mental at my absence. Especially Toadclaw- he's probably having a fit because he hasn't seen me for more than two hours._

The ThunderClan she-cat came to this place a lot. It was really the only place in the forest that she could truly relax. She growled in frustration._ Ever since I became a warrior, all I've heard is, "Oh, Shadepetal, will you be my mate!" I don't ever get to do the duties of a proper warrior. Oh no! No tom could possibly bare the thought of me getting hurt!_ She shook her head. _I don't understand why I get all this __attention anyway. I'm not that even that pretty._

This wasn't entirely true. Shadepetal was very pretty. In fact, she was strikingly beautiful. She was a lithe, and slender she-cat, with a pair of enchanting cerulean blue eyes, along with a smooth and silky jet-black pelt, the same colour as the night sky. Her tail was very long; almost as long as her whole frame, and her head was in perfect proportion to her body. She was, without doubt, the most attractive she-cat that had ever lived by the Clans.

This was a fact that Shadepetal was most certainly not proud of.

It wasn't like her life was terrible though. Oh no. Shadepetal lived in luxury- bathed in praise and love. She thought this was incredibly stupid. Honestly, sometimes, she believed that a lot of her Clan mates were more loyal to her than ThunderClan!

It was ironic really. Many she-cats would wish for the kind of attention that Shadepetal got: if someone asked her to swap lives with them, Shadepetal would without hesitation agree. All she wanted to be was a normal warrior, in a normal Clan. Was that too much to ask for?

Plus, her life had started going down hill ever since she fell in love. In her case, you would've thought it would be easy to get a mate, that with all the toms that loved her… but Shadepetal wasn't interested in toms. To be honest, she never had been.

Shadepetal was in love with a she-cat.

She had been for awhile now. Whenever Shadepetal stepped near her, she felt her heart quicken. Whenever they talked Shadepetal found it hard to breathe- and since they were best friends, they talked a lot.

_Redpelt. _She purred as the name rolled off her tongue. Shadepetal imagined her soft, dark red fur, and deep mustard eyes. The ThunderClan she-cat had never told _anyone_ about her feelings for Redpelt, because she wasn't sure how they would take it. When she had first realised, she had been confused. She hadn't known anyone who was in love with a she-cat. As far as she knew it, was un-heard of.

But to be perfectly honest, Shadepetal didn't give one.

Her mind wondered back to think about how ThunderClan were reacting. _I'd better be getting back._ She thought. Turning around, she leapt down from the branch and started making her way down the trunk of the Ancient Oak.

* * *

'Where is she?'

Redpelt rolled her eyes as she heard the leader of ThunderClan, Rootstar, talking with hushed voices to his senior warriors down beside the fresh-kill pile. She snorted and tucked into her mouse, savouring it's delicious flavour.

'The last time I saw her it was in camp yesterday.' Snakescar told him, as if this was a total disaster.

Redpelt tried to ignore them- she turned her attention away from the two cats and focused on a group of apprentices milling about round the warriors den. Her anger levels rose when she realised that they were talking about how Shadepetal was the most beautiful she-cat that ever lived.

She blinked and looked down, feeling the familiar burning sensation in her stomach. She tried to ignore it, but her jealousy was uncontrollable. It had been ever since she and Shadepetal were kits. The only thing she ever heard nowadays was how Shadepetal was amazing in every way.

_There's never anything about Redpelt. I'm just Shadepetal's best friend. _Redpelt thought bitterly.

She shook her head and finished her mouse before licking her chops and getting to her paws. _I have sun-high patrol. _She reminded herself, distracting herself from the matter of Shadepetal. Her eyes distant, the she-cat padded up to the group of toms gathering around the camp entrance, waiting to leave. They consisted of Flamescar, Flowerpaw and Toadclaw-

_Oh no. __Not Toadclaw!_ She groaned.

Toadclaw was the worst of all the toms in ThunderClan. He adored Shadepetal. Literally: Redpelt thought that he might go and commit suicide if she told him that she didn't love him. Shadepetal had told Redpelt again and again about how _annoying _Toadclaw was… the only problem was that everyone expected Shadepetal to become mates with Toadclaw. He was the leader's son, plus he was probably the most handsome of all the toms in ThunderClan, which he made sure _everyone knew._

And he hated Redpelt, for the fact that she was closer to Shadepetal that he was.

The leader of the patrol, Flamescar, stepped forward and glared at her. 'Where've you been?' He snapped.

She stared at him. Flamescar had only arrived there a few seconds before Redpelt. 'I was finishing my fresh kill pile. It is okay to eat you know.' She told him, slowly.

Flamescar opened his mouth to reply, but Toadclaw cut in. 'Well you should have eaten faster.' He spat, as if this patrol was the most important thing in the world. My father told us that as well as patrolling the ShadowClan border, we had to keep her eyes out for Shadepetal.' He puffed out his chest, but his eyes were tainted with worry.

Redpelt met his eyes. 'Are you generally kidding me?' She said incredulously.

'Shadepetal is gone!' Flowerpaw squeaked. 'We have to find her before dark, when all the badgers and foxes come out.' The small apprentice shuddered.

Redpelt stiffened. That was another thing that annoyed her about Toadclaw. Flowerpaw was Toadclaw's apprentice. Toadclaw was far too young to be given an apprentice. Rootstar should have most definitely given the apprentice to either Redpelt or Shadepetal- and since he couldn't bare for his sons, _future mate, _to be put through any stress whatsoever, he had given Flowerpaw to Toadclaw, without even considering Redpelt.

'You guys,' Redpelt told the three toms matter-of-factly. 'She's been gone for about two hours. It's seriously no big deal. Shadepetal likes to go for walks in the forest. It helps her relax-'

Toadclaw's eyes widened, before his pelt bushed out threateningly and he unsheathed his claws. Redpelt backed away little in shock. 'Why didn't you tell us this earlier?!' Toadclaw yelled, making several members of ThunderClan turn and look at him. 'Where does she usually go?'

Redpelt opened her mouth to speak, but at the last moment decided against it. She remembered something that her best friend had told her when they were apprentices. Shadepetal loved to go to the Ancient Oak and sit on the highest branch. It was the only place in the forest that she could be alone. Shadepetal had made her swear that she never told anyone else about her secret place.

She shrugged. 'I don't know.' She murmured. 'She just kind've, enjoys walking, y'know?' She told them.

Toadclaw glared at her for a little longer, before sheathing his claws and turning around. 'Still, you could've told us she went for walks.' He said, sourly, before turning around and gesturing to the other two members of the patrol. 'Come on! We're leaving.'

Redpelt felt defiance rush through her system. _Flamescar is a senior warrior! _She thought. _Surely he's the leader of the- _She stopped when she remembered Rootstar's special treatment of his son. Redpelt sighed, and bounded after them into the forest.

Toadclaw and the rest had bounded ahead, and clearly weren't slowing down, so Redpelt eventually gave up running and slowed her paw steps down so that she was walking through the forest. She knew it was a border patrol, but since she knew it would save a lot more time and effort for her to go and find Shadepetal, she changed her path and headed off in the direction of the Ancient Oak.

It didn't take her long before she was standing beside the huge trunk of the seemingly endless oak. She craned her head backwards till it hurt, seeing if she could get a decent view of her friend. 'Shadepetal?' she called out.

The branches of a shrub rustled from behind, and Redpelt spun around. 'Hello?' She called out. 'Shadepetal?'

The bush rustled again and Redpelt's eyes contracted. She padded forward-

Before a black blur of fur erupted from the bush and met Redpelt head on. The dark red she-cat let out a _mrrow_ of amusement as she realised it was Shadepetal. The two of them rolled about on the ground like kits, play fighting. Shadepetal had the upper hand, and her movements were swift and agile, but the beautiful she-cat had always been better at hunting than fighting. Redpelt, however, excelled in fighting and sucked at hunting.

Nevertheless, Shadepetal had the advantage of surprise. Soon enough, Redpelt was lying on her back, with Shadepetal grinning down at her, her eyes sparkling in the sun. 'I win.' She purred.

Redpelt rolled her eyes playfully. 'Okay, okay.' She said, smiling. 'You win.'

'A usual.' Shadepetal smirked, batting at Redpelt's face with her paws.

Redpelt rolled her eyes. 'Yeah, yeah, of course.' She purred. The she-cat shoved her off. 'How you doin' Shadepetal?' She asked, sitting up and running her tongue down her pelt to remove the dirt from her fur.

'Fine.' Shadepetal replied, she too beginning to wash herself. There was silence for a moment. 'I suppose ThunderClan is going haywire cause I've been gone?' She asked Redpelt.

Redpelt nodded vigorously. 'Even more than usually!' She stopped. 'Especially-'

'Toadclaw?' Shadepetal guessed, finishing her sentence.

Redpelt tilted her head to onside, in mock confusion. 'How in StarClan's name did you guess?' She said, sarcastically, causing Shadepetal to let out another _mrrow_ of laughter.

Redpelt stepped closer to her. 'Red Petal?' She asked.

Shadepetal nodded. The dark red she-cat reached forward with her paw: Shadepetal did the same. Both their paws met softly in the middle, and their claws curled around the other's. The gesture was something that the two she-cats had done every since they had declared themselves best friends while being apprentices. It was a sign of friendship. Their friendship to be precise. If either Shadepetal or Redpelt asked to do the Red Petal sign (as they called it) it was something to represent how good friends they were. They often did it in greeting to show how much they appreciated the other, and sometimes they did it when they were overflowing with emotion and needed a friend to comfort them.

The two of them drew apart, ending the Red Petal. Shadepetal was staring into Redpelt's eyes. Over time, the Red Petal had become something spiritual between the two of them. It was a sign of great respect as well.

Soon, Redpelt found herself becoming uncomfortable with Shadepetal's emotion filled gaze. She looked away, and coughed. 'So, um…' She looked around, feeling awkward. 'Nice weather today?' She tried eventually.

Shadepetal's eyes diluted with confusion, but luckily Redpelt was saved when a huge yowling echoed through the undergrowth. Redpelt looked to her right and saw three cats erupt into the clearing. Shadepetal yowled in surprise as one of them barrelled into her. Redpelt instinctively unsheathed his claws and growled at the attackers, ready for a fight, when she suddenly realised it was the sun-high patrol.

Toadclaw was the one who had ran into Shadepetal. He was covering the she-cat in licks. 'Oh Shadepetal!' He yowled. 'I was so worried about you.'

Redpelt could hardly stop herself from bursting out laughing. Shadepetal stiffened awkwardly under Toadclaw's touch, and she quickly kicked him off of her. 'Yeah, um, I'm glad to see you too.' She muttered.

Flamescar let out a long sigh of relief. 'I'm glad we found you in time.' He said.

'We thought you had been taken prisoner by ShadowClan!' Aspenpaw piped up.

Redpelt ears twitched and she smirked. 'Yeah…' She said, sarcastically. 'That's _definitely _the most likely option.'

Shadepetal snickered, and her tail flicked along the ground impatiently. Toadclaw, on the other hand, didn't find Redpelt's joke very funny. He glared at her. 'You never know.' He snarled. 'What if she had been hurt?'

Redpelt glanced at Shadepetal. 'She can take care of herself just fine.' She retorted.

'And besides,' Shadepetal added. 'I go out tonnes for walks. You really should be used to me being away for a few hours.' Her eyes narrowed a little. 'Anyone would've thought you cared about me.'

Toadclaw, without even heeding Shadepetal's hint, padded forward to muzzle her cheek. 'I couldn't bare it if you got hurt.' He said softly, his voice brimming with emotion.

For some reason, Redpelt felt a pull of jealousy flare up in heart as Toadclaw made contact with Shadepetal's cheek. She wasn't really sure why though. She quickly shook her head and put it down to the fact that, as usual, Shadepetal received more attention that she ever did.

The patrol turned around and began to head back to camp, all the toms in the patrol chatting excitedly about how well they would be rewarded for finding Shadepetal and bringing her back home. Redpelt hung back with Shadepetal at the back of the patrol. They talked about what Shadepetal had, "meditated", up in the tree. When she was in her secret place, Shadepetal usually came back with a new realisation about life that Redpelt always found interesting.

A huge crescendo of male yowls echoed around the clearing as Shadepetal and Redpelt entered the ThunderClan camp shortly after the patrol. Instantly, half the members of ThunderClan were on their paws, and greeting Shadepetal back. It was clear that the other half of the camp couldn't care less about Shadepetal return. This group were the she-cats.

Rootstar stepped forward. 'Where did you find Shadepetal?' He asked, the question directed solely towards his son, the cat he had named the leader of the patrol.

Redpelt rolled her eyes (this particular action was becoming her signature move), knowing that she wouldn't get any praise for being the first to find her. She almost laughed as Toadclaw went onto describe how Shadepetal had been at the Ancient Oak, surrounded by dogs that the patrol had to fight to get to her-

Wait, what?

Redpelt and Shadepetal exchanged glances as he carried on. Toadclaw's obviously fake story seemed to be receiving quite the reception from the other ThunderClan warriors; even the she-cats seemed impressed by Toadclaw's so called _bravery. _

Redpelt opened her mouth to speak and tell Rootstar what had really happened, but Shadepetal whisked her tail across her best friend's mouth. 'Don't.' She murmured. 'We both know who Toadclaw will believe.'

She felt a burning anger in her stomach. _But he hasn't ever mentioned me in any of this!_ She thought angrily.

Ignoring her annoyance and frustration at ThunderClan, Redpelt padded away and followed Shadepetal into the warriors den. She sat down in her nest, just beside Shadepetal's. It was already getting dark outside, and both the she-cats liked to get an early start in the morning.

As Shadepetal's breath slowed down, and Redpelt realised she was asleep, the dark red she-cat wondered about the two cats friendship. She wanted to be friends with Shadepetal. She really did! But nowadays, it was getting harder to be everyday. The days they did get to spend together were being shortened because of the amount of time Shadepetal was harassed by tomcats.

She sighed and turned over in her nest. She felt that jealousy once more. _You have everything I could've wished Shadepetal. _She murmured in her sleep. _And yet sometimes, I wonder if you wish to have the life that I have._

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**What do you think of the opening? Please RR!**_  
_


	2. Chapter 2

**Author's note: Yay for me! A quick update. :D**

**Thanks for the reception on the story. I wasn't totally sure how the story would get received in terms of reviews, but I'd like to thank you for all your feedback! Here's a reply to your reviews.**

**Lolkat123: Thanks for your review! Yeah, I'm hoping it will go okay as well. BTW I saw your new fanfic called Tom. I like it so far. :D**

**Allison Jalexa: Really? Thanks for your support!**

**Keeralie: Yeah Toadclaw is a bit annoying isn't? Definitely Berrynose times ten. :)**

**Splash paw: Yeah I feel kinda ****sorry for Shadepetal as well, especially since I know some of the stuff that's gonna happen in this.**

**Scarletheart15: Thanks- yeah, I'm hoping I can complete this whole thing. :)**

**Sky of Stars: Awww… I'm flattered really. XDXDXD**

**Amberstorm123: Hmm… well, I recently read another fanfiction called Running Up The Hill, which I really enjoyed. It was about a curse that is set upon Ivypool that makes tonnes of toms and she-cats included fall in love with her, but she's what's known as asexual, meaning she's just not interested in getting a mate. At the end it's quite sweet because she does up falling in love after a lot of character development and dark stuff with Hazeltail, a she-cat. I think I was a bit inspired by that, but also since I wanted to see what it was like to write a story based solely upon a slash couple.**

**In answer to that, it's surprisingly not that different from writing a normal pairing.**

**Stuffed Watermelon: Yep! Good I got a quick update… for once.**

**CuteCat13: Nice to know I have devoted reader! Oh yes, and thanks for pointing out the typo.**

**So yeah. Overall thanks, already.**

**Just saying, this might end up being a short story, just cause I find it hard to write a very long story if it's just based upon one romantic couple, so this will probably be something like eight chapters long or whatever.**

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**The Curse of Beauty:**

**(Chapter Two)**

Someone breathed into Shadepetal's ear. 'Shadepetal!' A voice called. 'Wake up!'

The beautiful she-cat turned over in her nest and groaned. 'What?' She murmured. 'Wha- what is it?' She opened her eyes a wink to see the dawn sunlight was streaming in through the entrance to the warriors den, before quickly closing her eyes once more.

It's Redpelt.' The voice said again.

At this, Shadepetal opened her eyes fully, and sat up in her nest, still feeling slightly sleepy. When the sight in front of her finally came into view, she gasped a little and her tail uncurled itself from around her paws. The early morning sunlight seemed to be captured in Redpelt's fur, making her seem like a wall of fire, towering over her and threatening to engulf her. Shadepetal gulped, suddenly feeling the familiar red blush beneath her fur. She felt it whenever her best friend was standing that close to her.

'Oh… uh…' Shadepetal stuttered, struggling for words. 'Um… what did, you want?' She managed to choke out finally. Redpelt was standing very close to her: Shadepetal could see every whisker, and every fleck of fur upon her face.

Redfur blinked, confused as to why her best friend was lost for words; then she looked down and seemed to realise that her friend was probably stuttering because of how close she was standing. 'Oh!' She said quickly, backing away a little and sending a few embarrassed licks of her tongue down her pelt. 'Sorry.' She apologised.

Though Shadepetal was relieved that the blush beneath her fur finally disappeared as Shadepetal stepped away, she found that her heart fluttered a little with disappointment. The fact that Redpelt had been so close hadn't been exactly, well, unpleasant. If anything, she had enjoyed it.

'It doesn't matter.' Shadepetal added smoothly. She too began to groom herself. 'Red Petal?' She suddenly said, without thinking.

Redpelt's eyes narrowed. Shadepetal immediately scolded herself in her brain. _What are you thinking about, Shadepetal? _She asked herself. She and Redpelt hardly ever performed the Red Petal connection in public places like in the camp. Shadepetal inspected the rest of the den to see if anyone else was still there, but it seemed that all of them had already woken up. She shuffled her paws awkwardly, expecting Redpelt's eyes to be annoyed, but Shadepetal relaxed when she realised that Redpelt's gaze had softened.

'Alright.' Redpelt replied, softly, though there was an element of puzzlement in her gaze. The two cats locked paws, and Shadepetal felt her heart quicken.

Redpelt drew away, and turned around. Shadepetal padded after her into the ThunderClan camp, and she realised that it wasn't dawn. It was almost sun-high! _Damn._ She thought, shaking her head, before following Redpelt over to the fresh-kill pile. She heard many toms wolf whistle as she walked past, and she groaned as she realised that Toadclaws "gang" were sitting in a collective circle around the pile. Redpelt bristled, and she quickly grabbed herself a squirrel and Shadepetal a robin (Shadepetal's favourite) before settling down a good distance from Toadclaw.

The two of them ate in silence for a moment, before Redpelt spoke. 'You over slept.'

Shadepetal was just about to reply with the usual, 'I know" and 'I'm such a mouse brain', but she paused when she noted the disapproving tone in Redpelt's gaze. True, she received this whenever she over slept, but this time… there was a certain anger to it. An edge that Shadepetal rarely saw in her fiery best friend. Shadepetal wasn't sure that she liked it.

'Yeah.' Shadepetal said, choosing her words with caution. Almost instantly, she shook her head. _This is Redpelt! _She told herself. _The cat you promised to stand beside forever. Why am I being cautious? _'I'm sorry about it.' Shadepetal replied solemnly. 'It's just…' She sighed. 'I don't ever really get to go on genuine warrior duties, so I got kinda used to sleeping in.

Redpelt snorted, and didn't meet her gaze. She had heard all this before, and Shadepetal knew that she thought that what she told her every time she over-slept was simply an excuse.

'It's true!' Shadepetal exclaimed. 'I hardly _ever _get to leave camp now. I did in my apprentice hood, but all I really get to do is sit around in camp all day as toms flirt with me on either side.'

Redpelt still stayed quiet. Shadepetal realised she didn't believe her. Suddenly, Shadepetal was blasted back to all the times that she had told her things like this. All the times she had told Redpelt about her odd confinement to camp. Suddenly, Shadepetal got the feeling that Redpelt thought that she was a _liar._

'Look Redpelt.' She said, whisking her tail over her best friends cheek. 'I know you don't believe me, so I'm going to prove it.'

This made Redpelt raise her head. Interest sparked in her beautiful amber gaze, making Shadepetal's body fill with a warm sensation. 'Oh really?' Redpekt asked, clearly trying to sound disinterested, but failing badly.

Shadepetal purred and nudged Redpelt with her muzzle. 'Really.' She turned her head, noticing that at the camp entrance, a hunting patrol consisting of a few young warriors and the deputy, Whisperfeather. 'Just you watch.' Shadepetal said, before getting to her paws and making her way over towards Whisperfeather.

Whisperfeather was one of the most inappropriately named she-cats that Shadepetal had ever met. For a she-cat, the deputy was _huge! _Literally. She was similar in bulk and strength to Toadclaw, and he was a pretty big tom. Shadepetal felt tension build her stomach: she knew that Whisperfang didn't really like her. To be honest, apart from Redpelt, Shadepetal didn't know any she-cats that did like her.

'Hey Whisperfeather!' She called, making her voice sound eager and excitable. 'Can I join your patrol?'

Whisperfang's piercing orange eyes met the gaze of Shadepetal. She seemed a little surprised that the she-cat was volunteering to go on a patrol. She opened her mouth, though reluctantly, to say yes, when suddenly, the other two members of the patrol, all of whom were tomcats, stepped forward.

'Shadepetal…' One of them cooed, as if she was a pet that needed to be taken care of. Shadepetal recognised him as Tornscratch. 'Do you want all that lovely jet-black fur to get all dirty and matted?'

Shadepetal pretended to flatten her ears. She improvised on the spot. 'Tornscratch, I really don't care.' She began. 'I can just clean my pelt again later-'

'Of course you don't.' Tornscratch interrupted soothingly. He reached forward to touch her, and Shadepetal quickly backed away in disgust. 'So just stay in camp, for me, alright?'

Shadepetal craned her neck and noticed that the other tom was ushering the rest of the patrol away, as was Whisperfeather. She seemed glad that the toms had made up an excuse for her to not leave camp. 'Come on, Tornscratch!' She called back, gesturing with her tail for him to leave.

He gave her a winning smile, before dashing after the patrol out of the the ThunderClan camp. He called over his shoulder. 'Don't follow us.'

Shadepetal pretended to look disappointed, but as soon as Tornscratch disappeared from view, Shadepetal dropped the act and let out a purr. She turned around and headed back to Redpelt, feeling satisfied. She had proved to Redpelt that she wasn't lying!_  
_

'See?' She confidently, sitting back down beside Redpelt. 'I'm not really allowed t leave camp on patrol, so I got used to sleeping away the hours didn't get bored…' Shadepetal trailed off at this, because she only just noticed the pure fury on Redpelt's face. She shrank a little where she was sitting.

'You're telling me,' Redpelt began, her eyes narrowed down to slits. 'That you haven't left camp on patrol… _since you were made a warrior?!'_ Her voice rose to an enraged shout. Several cats turned to look at her.

Shadepetal was silent, before she hesitantly placed her tail on Redpelt's shoulder. 'Look, Redpelt, it's not all that bad.' She hesitated, struggling with the temptation to tell her friend how she actually felt about it.

Redpelt brushed Shadepetal's tail away and she turned to face her. 'Now, it's not bad.' Redpelt hissed. Shadepetal sighed a little in relief, thinking that Redpelt wasn't taking it too badly-

'It's outrageous!'

Shadepetal's smile evaporated, and she stared at the floor, suddenly feeling very, very small. Compared to Redpelt, no matter how much she loved her, she often _did _feel tiny in comparison.

Redpelt stood up, knocking her half eaten squirrel away with a simple flick of her dark ginger tail. 'This is awful Shadepetal!' She exclaimed, turning to face her again. Some of the anger had left her eyes, but Shadepetal still felt intimidated. 'You, just lying around in camp all day, watching your life tick by, without even getting to go on patrol!' She huffed and cut over Shadepetal as the beautiful she-cat opened her mouth to speak. 'I won't tolerate you being treated like this.' She murmured, before turning around and padding in the direction of the leader's den. 'I'm going to protest to Rootstar about this.'

After Redpelt had padded away, Shadepetal was left feeling utterly helpless. Her paws felt numb. She had definitely not been expecting how red pelt had taken the fact that she hardly ever got out of camp anymore. _Yes, _she reasoned with herself, _it is pretty bad… okay, it's very bad,_ she admitted to herself. Also, there was a part of her that was almost glad. It was terrible that she hardly ever got to see the forest, or feel the wind on her whiskers. She knew that she would never have protested to Rootstar about it. He wouldn't have take her seriously. A smile appeared on her face. That was one of the main reasons she loved Redpelt. She didn't just stand around talking, she acted.

It was then that Shadepetal realised something else.

Over time, she had noticed that Redpelt was an odd kind of protective shield towards her. Many of the toms in ThunderClan knew about Redpelt's fiery personality, and how she was _very _aware of how Shadepetal didn't like being harassed. Perhaps the only time she wasn't approached by toms was when Redpelt was around, but as soon as Redpelt was gone, they all took their chance.

She groaned, knowing what was coming next. _I've fallen into the lion's den._

As if like clockwork, Shadepetal felt the scent of Toadclaw grow a lot stronger. She turned her head and discovered that the leader's son was heading towards her; she could tell even from a distance that he was purring his head off. Several other toms had seemed on the edge of getting to their paws, but they sat back down, disappointed, almost as if they were accepting that Toadclaw had already picked the best meal.

Shadepetal readied herself for the worst as he reached her. The motor of happiness inside his throat echoed like a thunderstorm. 'Hey Shadepetal.' He said, his eyes fixed upon her pelt.

Shadepetal sighed and glanced upwards. 'Hello Toadclaw.' She replied stiffly, her tail swishing along the ground. She grew even more uncomfortable when she realised that he wasn't staring at her pelt, but was in fact directing his gaze a lit lower than Shadepetal wanted him too. She adjusted the position of her body so that he couldn't stare at that particular part of her anatomy.

He seemed a little crestfallen, but anything but discouraged. Without asking for her consent, the tom sat down beside her. 'Nice day, huh?' He said, smoothly.

She blinked. Toadclaw had a talent for making even the most simple of sentences sound seductive. She looked up at these sky to see that it was indeed a nice day, and was it her imagination, or was it a bit hotter? 'I guess.' She commented.

He edged a little closer. 'Nice day for a walk, as well?'

Her eyes narrowed, and before he could say anything more, she spoke. 'No.' Her voice was quite but firm. 'I'm fine.'

Again, he wasn't discouraged. 'Really?' He said, closing the distance between the two of them even more. Shadepetal felt like she was trapped in a cage, unable to break out.

'Yes.' She managed, surprised that her voice remained firm: inside, Shadepetal wanted to scream and shout. She didn't like anyone getting as close to her as Toadclaw was now, with the exception of Redpelt.

'Well,' Toadclaw replied. Now, his voice took on a flirtatious tone - Shadepetal knew he was hitting on her. It felt so, so wrong. She gasped in shock as his tail entwined itself forcefully with here's. 'I'm sure the Clan won't mind if we enjoy ourselves right here in the camp...'

* * *

Anger coursed through Redpelt's body as she stomped out of Rootstar's den. _That damn tomcat. _She thought to herself. _I don't care if he's my damn leader, he's a stupid, self-__obsessed tomcat._

She went over their conversation in her head. A few minutes ago, she had been outraged by the fact that Rootsar and the other toms in the Clan weren't letting Shadepetal out of the camp even to hunt and border fight. She shook her head. _I can't imagine not being able to run around outside and enjoy the forest. That must be why she enjoys having those walks of her's so_ much.

Rootstar had said that Shadepetal was a far too valuable asset to her Clan to be put in danger by going on patrol. Redpelt had quickly told him that it was fox dung to call her a warrior if she couldn't do the duties of a warrior. You might as well not call her a warrior at all.

He had, of course, dismissed her at this point, telling her not to question his judgement again.

_I'll question your judgement if I think it needs questioning, Rootstar._

She rolled her eyes and her ears pricked, when she suddenly found that the camp of ThunderClan had turned eerily silent. She frowned. _What? _Quickly, she noticed that they were all staring at two cats who were sitting down beside the fresh-kill pile. Her eyes widened when she recognised them.

It was Shadepetal and Toadclaw.

For the second time in two days, she found her heart beat faster when she realised how close the tom was sitting to Shadepetal. She ignored the odd feeling; it didn't matter at that moment. All she cared about was helping her friend. Redpelt's face contorted with disgust as Toadclaw entwined his tail with Shadepetal's. Her claws unsheathed and they scraped along the stone surface.

When Redpelt saw Toadclaw whisper something that had to be seductive in Shadepetal's ear, the dark red she-cat had had enough.

With a threatening snarl, the she-cat leapt down into the clearing. Now, all the attention of the tomcats were upon her. Their eyes widened in shock as she approached Toadclaw and Redpelt. She was sickened by them. They were all horrible. _Why aren't they helping Shadepetal?_

'Enough.' She hissed, the fur along her spine bristling. She glared at Toadclaw, her eyes burning.

He regarded Redpelt a few seconds: the expression on his face showed that he was surprised that someone had spoken up against him. In this moment of distraction, Shadepetal quickly wriggled away from his touch. He glanced back at Shadepetal, annoyed, before turning his attention back to Redpelt. 'Enough of what?'

'You,' she said, very slowly, 'sexually harassing Shadepetal.'

Shadepetal's breathed out a sigh of relief, clearly glad someone was actually intervening and challenging Toadclaw about what he had been doing. 'I wasn't sexually harassing her,' he replied, as if he was actually shocked that she was suggesting such a thing. 'This is all intentional.'

This made Redpelt truly angry (for the second in that day no less). She stalked straight up to Toadclaw and shoved his face into here's. 'What,' she spat. 'The fact that you were pressurising her into mating with you in the middle of the ThunderClan camp? Was that intentional?'

Toadclaw didn't seem to be threatened. He licked his claws and began to groom his whiskers. 'She's my mate, Redpelt.' He said, mildly. 'She belongs to me. I'm allowed to talk with her.'

A gasp echoed from behind, and Redpelt raised her head to see Shadepetal. For the first time in a long while, Redpelt saw that Shadepetal had her fur spiked up and her fangs bared. 'I am not your mate!' She yowled.

For the first time in the conversation, Toadclaw seemed to be showing emotion. Redpelt's eyes widened when she realised he was hurt! The tomcat opened his mouth to speak, when suddenly, a yowl reverberated through the clearing.

'Redpelt!' It said. 'What is the meaning of this?'

All three cats turned to face the High-Ledge. Redpelt realised it was Rootstar. Instinctively, she groaned, because she knew what would happen next.

The leader of ThunderClan padded down from his advantage point and stalked across the clearing towards Redpelt. She gulped a little, but quickly swallowed the nagging feeling of fear in her belly and shook it off.

When the tom finally reached her, he placed his full attention in Redpelt. 'So,' he asked her. 'Are you going to answer my question?'

Toadclaw opened his mouth to speak but Shadepetal beat both Redpelt and Toadclaw to it. 'Toadclaw was sexually harassing me, Rootstar!' She shouted, sending the tomcat an icy glare.

Rootstar's eyes narrowed and he glanced at Toadclaw for a second. 'Shadepetal.' He said, his voice turning calm. 'Toadclaw is your mate. I don't really see the problem.'

There was silence for a moment as Shadepetal and Redpelt processed these words. Shadepetal had an expression of pure and utter horror, whereas Redpelt just seemed to have lost the ability to speak. 'Where.' Redpelt managed to choke out. 'Did. You. Get. That. Idea?' She ended the sentence on a higher note.

Rootstar's gaze was cold and hard. 'We decided it yesterday, after you got back from your little adventure.' A slight purr escaped his mouth. 'It's only fair that the most handsome cat ever is mate to the most beautiful cat ever.'

Redpelt stepped forward now, her confidence coming back. 'But she doesn't love him.' She growled.

Rootstar stepped forward as well, and their faces pressed together. 'And who are you to decide that?' He asked.

'I'm her best friend!' Redpelt shrieked. She almost stopped speaking. She didn't understand why her heart was hurting so much. Why she felt like she had been rejected by the cat she loved.

'And she's right!' Shadepetal retorted, stepping forward so as to be by Redpelt's side. 'I don't love him. I'll never love him.' Redpelt felt her heart soar with happiness.

Toadclaw gasped in shock behind Rootstsar, and he too stepped forward to stand beside his father. 'Of course you do!' He murmured. 'I'm your mate. You're my mate. We love each other.'

'Love?' She said, her eyes contracting. 'That's not love. I know what love is; I do love someone, but it's not you, it's-' At this, she abruptly stopped, as if she suddenly realised that she giving away a big secret. And she probably was. Redpelt felt disappointment shroud her vision. _She does love someone! She actually does love a tomcat!_

Toadclaw didn't answer, but Rootstar did. 'I don't care.' He spat. 'Your mate is my son, and that is final.'

'You can't control her-' Redpelt began.

'Oh but I can.' Rootstar smirked, his face showing utter triumph. His ears flattened against the sides of his head. 'You are his mate, Shadepetal.' He said. 'You will stay his mate for the rest of your life. And you Redpelt,' he continued, 'are confined to the camp for a moon.

The camp fell silent once more. Nobody said a word. None of the other members of ThunderClan had said anything for a long while.

Rootstar's fur was ruffled, but he shook his pelt and groomed it a little so that it fell down into it's usual position. 'Come, Toadclaw.' He gestured with his tail for his son to follow him. 'I need to discuss something with you.'

The two of them left, leaving both Shadepetal and Redpelt lost for words in the middle of the ThunderClan camp.

* * *

**Hmm… sorry about the abrupt ending. It's just, I kinda felt like the chapter was becoming a bit too long. It seemed like a decent place to end it as well. We'll get more insight into the two protagonist's feelings in the next chapter.**

**Oh yes: please RR! Tell me what you thought of Chapter Two in a review. it's looking retry bad for Shadepetal, right? I hope I'm sympathetic enough to give this story a happy ending… XD**


	3. Chapter 3

**Author's Note: Oh god I hate Writers' Block so so much! And I have to thank you guys for helping me get inspiration to get this chapter up. Especially Darkfur0211. You made me feel terrible about myself for not updating.**

**Emerald Flashes- Yep: as I've said before, they really are annoying aren't they. Thanks a lot for your review!**

**Darkfur0211- I've already given you special thanks, but I'll say it again. Your review was the main reason I got a lot of inspiration back. Thanks so so so much!**

**Flashingthunder- Thanks a lot! It's a really great feeling when someone says they like your story. :D Please review again.**

**Starriewonders317- Yeah (purrfect review XD) Thanks. Yep. I was hoping I could continue this without getting Writers' Block for awhile, but obviously it didn't happen.**

**CuteCat13- Yeah thanks for the advice. XD I've contacted two betas, and it's kind've of annoying cause none of them have replied yet. Hopefully one of them will get in contact soon. And thanks!**

**Emberclaw- Yeah! When I was writing Chapter Two I just wanted to reach forward and hug both of my main characters.**

**Eaglehaze- Uh huh. Yeah, I suppose I was trying for originality quite a lot, so glad to know I succeeded. :)**

**Keeralie- Yep. Toadclaw should definitely go rot in the Dark Forest!**

**Guest- Thanks! Yeah. You hardly ever see slash couples in this archive.**

**Allison Jalexa- If I was Toadclaw, I'd watch out for making Redpelt angry especially in this chapter. **

**DarkFang0211- Thanks for your suggestions. I'll take into consider all three of them, especially the one about Rootstar dying in a car accident. XDXDXD**

**Splashpaw- … *nods vigorously* I'm really unkind to Shadepetal aren't I?**

**Amberstrike 33- Ahh but you see, that was what made it such a great fanfiction! By the end of it, I generally truly believed that it was a perfectly canon couple. Yeah it's quite awkward for Redpelt, since she hasn't realised that she has feelings for Shadepetal- plus that fact she's jealous of her will complicate it even more.**

**catsandcoffee- Thanks! Yeah, I was hoping people would find that line funny. :)**

**So yeah! Please carry on telling me your thoughts. Oh yes, and I hope you like the longest chapter of the story yet.**

* * *

**The Curse of Beauty**

**Chapter Three:**

The full moon shone high in the sky. Redpelt's whiskers bristled in annoyance and she looked away- every time she looked up, she was instantly reminded that it was the gathering and that she wasn't going. Usually it would've have just been an annoyance, but tonight, it scared her.

She picked at the mouse unhappily. To be perfectly honest she wasn't hungry, but she swallowed down the prey nonetheless. She wasn't sharing with anyone. Shadepetal was out of camp, trying to get away from Toadclaw.

And Redpelt wasn't exaggerating. Shadepetal was generally out in the forest, trying to get away from Toadclaw… it had got that bad.

Ever since Rootstar had declared that Shadepetal was Toadclaw's mate, he had convinced several of the apprentices, unintentionally, that love was keeping tabs on each other in _every, waking, moment. _Redpelt had hardly seen Shadepetal without Toadclaw standing uncomfortably close to her. Normally, she would've have darted over and separated the two of them, but since Rootstar also seemed to be watching her to make sure that she didn't do anything to get in the way of the "happy" couple, Redpelt hadn't been able to intervene.

She snorted in anger as she saw Rootstar organising a patrol with Toadclaw pacing around frantically beside him. It was the second search party this week. Shadepetal's walks in the forest had grown more frequent over the past moon, since she couldn't relax in the camp. Redpelt also found that she was feeling the same thing. She felt trapped, being confined to the camp. Not only that, but Redpelt had been feeling terrible for awhile now.

The she-cat shook her head. _I don't know why I feel so… pathetic at the moment. _Usually, Redpelt was very fiery and open, but at the moment (more precisely, whenever Toadclaw was chasing Shadepetal around) she felt detached and melancholy. Not only that, she worried about Shadepetal. She was very aware that Rootstar was planning to announce that Shadepetal was his mouse brained excuse for son's mate at the gathering. She knew there would be an uproar, plus half the toms of the Clans complaining and being difficult.

She wasn't sure that she wanted to leave Shadepetal alone with Aspenheart either.

Aspenheart was a RiverClan warrior. He had grown up un-popular within his Clan, and had always seemed to have his head down. Redpelt had briefly been friends with him, but after awhile the friendship had faded away… mostly because of an event that had taken place several moons ago.

At a gathering, a young female apprentice of WindClan had disappeared. Naturally, WindClan had panicked, and because of a substantial amount of evidence that the apprentice had been kidnapped by a RiverClan cat, WindClan accused their neighbours. But, at the same time, Aspenheart had disappeared, so RiverClan accused WindClan of kindapping _their_ warrior. Redpelt remembered it well. She had only been an apprentice, but she understood that all of the Clans were going through a stressful time. Both ShadowClan and ThunderClan were anxious that they were going to be asked to choose a side as well.

And then, suddenly, both of the cats had reappeared. Aspenheart had simply strolled back into the RiverClan camp, looking extremely pleased with himself, as if he had just done something he had intended to do a long time ago. The apprentice of WindClan, however, hadn't reappeared the same way.

They had found her body floating in the lake. She had been covered in cats and bite marks, and her neck had been snapped. Not only that, but apparently, after inspection, the medicine cat had come to the conclusion that the apprentice had been attacked in more ways than one.

Obviously, accusing eyes turned to Aspenheart. He simply said that he had had no idea that the WindClan apprentice had disappeared, though he didn't explain why he had had disappeared as well, and since there was no real evidence to convict Aspenheart, life had carried on as usual.

Though, after the whole incident had ended, Redpelt heard rumours that several cats in RiverClan had caught Aspenheart staring at the WindClan apprentice in a strange way in more than one gathering. Redpelt herself had noticed this. No one had the guts to stand up and accuse him again, so in the end, everyone had just forgotten it. Aspenheart's life had changed for the better; now, he was a respected warrior of RiverClan, despite old suspicions.

But recently, Redpelt had noticed him staring at Shadepetal in the same way that he had looked at that poor WindClan apprentice all those moons ago.

Redpelt finished her mouse and padded away from the fresh-kill pile. She stared out into the forest longingly. She could see the highest tree top in the forest, that of the Ancient Oak, just in the distance. She knew that was where Shadepetal was. At that moment, she longed to be with her all the more.

* * *

The night was peaceful and calm. Shadepetal's jet black fur blended in with the pitch black sky, and the bright, silent moonlight caught in her fur. It looked like she was sparkling. Toms had always told her how she looked most beautiful in the night.

The she-cat closed her eyes and looked up at the heavens, searching the twinkling stars for movement. _StarClan? _She thought, silently. _Are you up there? If so… why are you putting me through all this pain?_

As usual, the twinkling stars gave her no answer.

Shadepetal shook her head. For the past moon, all she had felt was a desperate longing to be with her best friend, Redpelt again. Every moment that she spent away from Redpelt was like her heart being ripped out of her chest, and it hurt more than any wound she had ever known. Why had StarClan had to make things so complicated? All she wanted was to be happy with Redpelt; she knew both of them were she-cats, but was that such a bad thing? Was that so terrible that StarClan had to completely distance the two cats from each other?

The time Toadclaw spent in her company was almost as bad. At every second, the handsome son of Rootstar was at her side, licking her pelt and grooming her. To be honest, Toadclaw's devotion towards her touched her a little- but she wished that the tom would back off to give her time to breath. As much as she hated the attention, she had also noticed how Toadclaw's attitude towards her had changed. Beforehand, he had always been very seductive and arrogant, but over the past few days he had shown a different side to her. She had noticed how his eyes lit up with delight whenever he saw her. She noticed how he always brought her a piece of prey at dawn. She noticed how he always curled up around her at night, (much to her distaste) like she as the most precious thing in the world.

If anything, it made her hate him all the more.

She smiled sadly. Shadepetal was the most beautiful she-cat that ever existed, yet all she wanted to be was normal.

She sighed, before turning away and leaping down the branches of the tree. She touched down onto the ground softly and expertly: the act of climbing down the Ancient Oak had been performed many times. She sniffed the air, expecting to scent a search party heading towards her direction. Instead of group of cats, all she smelt was Toadclaw. Obviously the party had decided to split up.

To make things easier, Shadepetal headed through the clearing and on the undergrowth of the forest, moving swirly towards Toadclaw's smell. Soon enough, the tom appeared. Relief filled his gaze, and he dashed over to her. 'Shadepetal!' He said, quickly running his ear down her ear. 'Are you okay?'

'Yeah.' Shadepetal said slowly, drawing away her ear. 'I'm fine.'

Toadclaw had got used to this gesture, and what it meant to Shadepetal. Quickly, he drew away, knowing that if she drew away, she wanted him to do the same. 'Why do you always have to run off?' He purred. His tone was half questioning.

Shadepetal shrugged, staring at the ground. She didn't meet his gaze… she found hat it made her feel somewhat guilty. 'I dunno.' She shrugged. 'I guess that I like getting out.'

Toadclaw tilted his head to onside, confused, but he didn't press the matter any further. He looked up at the sky, taking note of how night was drawing in. 'Come on.' He murmured. 'We should probably be getting back to camp.'

Shadepetal nodded and fell into step beside Toadclaw. She posed her eyes and felt a pang at her heart as she remembered all the times she and Redpelt had walked together in the forest like this. She hoped that her best friend would be allowed to go to the gathering.

Almost as if on queue, Toadlcaw opened his mouth to speak. 'My father elected me and you to go the gathering, by the way.' He said.

Redpelt was surprised when she didn't see the usual arrogant smirk on his face as he talked about his father. She shrugged. 'Okay.' An idea sparked in her mind. _Rootstar tells Toadclaw everything! Will he know whether Redpelt is going? _

He repeated the question to Toadclaw, and he stayed silent for a moment. 'No.' Shadepetal hardly had time to sigh in despair before Toadclaw continued. 'I know you must feel… separated… from her.' He added, cautiously.

At this comment, Shadepetal had had enough. Everything she had felt over the past moon, and kept bottled up, suddenly seemed to the rise to the surface. Fury contorted her expression, and she turned on Toadclaw, her claws unsheathed. 'You know how I must feel?' She hissed in anger. Toadclaw immediately took a step back. 'You don't know how I feel at all! Have you ever been taken away from your best friend? Have you ever been taken away from the cat that-' She paused when she realised how she had been about to end that sentence. She finished instead with, 'that you care most about about? You know nothing! Stop pretending that you understand me, when you don't!'

Toadclaw just stared at Shadepetal, dumbfounded for a moment, before he closed his eyes and turned away. 'Yeah.' He mumbled. 'Right.'

Suddenly, Shadepetal felt her anger ebb away. She had never been the type of cat to stay angry for very long. Instead, she felt a burning guilt. Quickly, she moved to apologise. 'Look, Toadclaw,' she murmured, awkwardly, 'I'm sorry, it's just-'

But Toadclaw had already disappeared into the undergrowth. Shadepetal let out a little yelp, before dashing after him, her pelt prickling. She caught up with the tomcat pretty quickly, but they didn't speak until they got back to camp.

The ThunderClan camp was crowded, and the group of cats chosen to go to the gathering were assembling by the entrance. Toadclaw went to speak to Whisperfeather, whereas Shadepetal instinctively craned her neck to try and catch a glimpse of Redpelt. When she noticed the ginger she-cat by the fresh kill pile, she dashed over just as the patrol was about to leave.

Redpelt's eyes brightened a little when she caught sight of Shadepetal dashing over to her. 'Shadepetal.' She murmured. The two hardly spoke before the two of them had reached out their paws and interlinked them together, creating the Red Petal. Shadepetal suddenly found herself brimming with emotion at the contact between the two of them. It was like being reunited with her mother after thinking she was dead. The happiness that ripped through her as she felt Redpelt's claws curl around her's was a beautiful sensation.

Suddenly, and almost abruptly, Redpelt drew away. Shadepetal felt confusion form a knot in her belly, and she stared at her friend in confusion. The dark red she-cat's eyes were filled with an emotion she couldn't recognise, nor understand. 'Huh, that was, um, kind've emotional, uh?' Redpelt joked, awkwardly. Shadepetal caught the blush, barely visible because of the colour of pelt, beneath her fur.

Shadepetal barely had time to reply, when she felt a paw press down upon her shoulder. She spun around to see Toadclaw's apprentice, Flowerpaw, among other toms, behind her. 'Come on.' He squeaked. 'Rootstar says it's time to leave.'

The beautiful she-cat turned her head, desperately trying to catch one last glimpse at Redpelt's face, before she was pulled away by the massing crowd. Shadepetal closed her eyes. For a few moments, the she-cat had been given water to quench her thirst, but it had been ripped away almost as fast as it had appeared.

Shadepetal found herself in the centre of the party, and once again she was shoved to stand beside Toadclaw. The tom seemed to notice her almost despairing gaze, and he rested his tail, somewhat hesitantly, upon her paws.

And for once, the she-cat didn't care.

The ThunderClan cats began the journey to the island swiftly. They knew they were late. Rootstar lead the group, whereas Toadclaw and Shadepetal dropped behind so they were trailing behind the group. Shadepetal kept her eyes firmly on the ground, not wanting to face Toadclaw after how she had snapped at him earlier.

'Look,' Toadclaw said finally, after what seemed like hours of silence. Shadepetal refused to allow herself to look at him. 'I'm… sorry about… what I said earlier.'

This remarkable comment forced Shadepetal to raise her head and stare at her. She could hardly believe what she was hearing. _Is, is Toadclaw apologising?! Is the arrogant son of the leader, the one who sexually harassed me in camp, actually apologising for __something?_

Shadepetal wasn't given enough time to register this shock, for Toadclaw swiftly continued. 'I was wrong to pretend that I understood how you were feeling, because I don't.' He sighed. 'I, think that- maybe I don't understand you at all, or how you feel.' He shuffled his paws, before turning his head. 'I hope you can forgive me.'

Shadepetal felt some much inside her at that moment. So many new thoughts on the matter of Toadclaw. At first, she felt awful, because she knew that he really shouldn't be the one who was apologising, and truly, she should be apologising to him. But not only that, she felt like the apology was a lot larger than it seemed at first. For some reason, Shadepetal felt like he was apologising for a lot more than just saying that he understood her. She felt like he was apologising for every time he had done something that made her feel trapped. As if by magic, Shadepetal found she was seeing a completely different cat to the one saw one moon ago.

Toadclaw shook his head and stood a little higher. 'Come he!' He called, hastening his pace. 'We should probably catch up with Rootstar.'

Shadepetal quickly scrambled after him, feeling determined she wasn't going to let the apology go. 'It doesn't matter, Toadclaw!' She said, calling after him as he sped off ahead. 'I'm sorry for snapping at you too.'

Toadclaw turned his head and met her gaze, a glimmer of surprise in his face too. 'Apology accepted.' He replied, slightly modestly. The tom slowed down so that Shadepetal could fall into step beside him, now in the middle of the group of ThunderClan cats.

Soon, the cats chosen reached the gathering island. Shadeptal felt her breath quicken with excitement at going to the gathering as it neared her turn to cross the log-bridge: then she remembered what Rootstar was probably planning to do this gathering. _Oh StarClan. _She thought. _I hope there isn't a riot from the other toms._

Shadepetal practically danced over the bridge, her paws balancing precariously yet elegantly upon the bark. Toadclaw had already crossed and was waiting for her on the other side. He nodded at her, as if signalling that she was ready. 'By the way, Shadepetal,' he shuffled his paws, 'you should probably get ready for an uproar from the other Clans. My father is-'

'Going to announce that I'm your "mate",' she finished calmly, though nerves were tight in her body. 'I guessed as much.'

Toadclaw blinked, as if waiting for a sarcastic comment on how Shadepetal didn't love him, but when it didn't come, he just lead the way into the RiverClan, ShadowClan and WindClan cats that had already arrived.

Despite the fact that she loved Redpelt, Shadepetal found that she stuck unusually close to Toadclaw as they made there way through the mass. At least he was a familiar face compared to all the other tomcats who stared at her as if she was prey. Eventually, the two of them settled down by a hawthorn bush, a good fox length away from the nearest tom. She still felt several eyes strained upon her and how close Toadclaw was sitting, but she tried to heed them no notice.

Suddenly, she felt something brush against her side. She looked around to see a RiverClan tomcat with deep amber eyes standing beside her. Toadclaw noticed the contact too, and he turned to face the tom. He smelled deeply of fish and reeds.

'Hello Shadepetal.' He said, his voice as smooth and silky as milk. He gestured with his tail in greeting to Toadclaw as well, but his gaze never left Shadepetal's.

Shadepetal didn't recognise the tom. He seemed like a fairly experienced warrior- older than she was anyway. For the first time she felt Toadclaw stiffen uncomfortably beside her. This show of insecurity from her usually confident companion made her feel uncomfortable too.

Shadepetal opened her mouth to reply, but Toadclaw got there first. 'Aspenheart.' He said. Shadepetal could practically smell the tension in his voice.

He sat down without asking for permission, and began to groom his sleek tabby brown pelt. Shadepetal gazed into his eyes. They were a deep shade of amber, like the rising sun, that seemed quite welcoming and friendly at first, but when she took another look… she thought she could see malice in there, and lust. She shivered a little.

'I just thought I'd say hello to Shadepetal.' He stated, addressing Toadclaw, but again his piercing eyes never left her's. 'After all, I have heard so much about you from some of my friends and family.' He leaned in a bit. 'They say you are extremely attractive.'

Toadclaw was just about to respond but Shadepetal cut in. 'Well I hope you aren't disappointed.' She growled, a hint of a challenge in her voice. She didn't like this tom. It was something in his calm and cool demeanour. Perhaps it was the way he stared at her. Whatever it was, she didn't like it. Not one bit.

There were a few moments of silence. 'No.' Aspenheart retorted, his eyes contracting a little. 'I am most certainly not disappointed.'

Silence.

Toadclaw coughed. 'Well, I'm sure that you're not disappointed.' He added. Shadepetal frowned when she noticed how his claws were sheathing and unsheathing themselves. 'Most toms tend not to be.'

Finally Aspenheart broke the eye contact between him and Shadepetal. Instead, he turned to Toadclaw. 'And I can certainly see why.' He replied, before getting back to his paws and flicking his tail. 'Well thanks for your time.'

As the tom disappeared into the crowd of cats, Toadclaw put his full attention into Shadepetal. The she-cat was surprised at the intensity in his face. 'Stay away from Aspenheart.' He hissed, his voice laced with anger. Shadepetal wasn't certain if she was angry at her and him.

Shadepetal didn't back down. 'Oh please. I wasn't planning on getting anywhere near him.' She cast a glance back in the direction he had left, and shuddered. 'He creeped me out.'

Toadclaw nodded vigorously. 'He creeps everyone out...' The tom sighed. 'Everyone knows to avoid him.'

Curiosity sparked inside her. 'Why?' She asked. 'Why should everyone avoid him?'

Instantly, Toadclaw's face became monotone. 'It doesn't matter.'

Shadepetal felt somehwat rejected. She wanted to press the matter further, but the oppurtunity didn't come. A large yowl echoed across the island, and both of the cats turned to look at the sound. Rootstar sat with the other leader's, (Pebblestar of RiverClan, Heatherstar of WindClan and Pinestar of ShadowClan) on the highest branch of the tree. Pinestar was the one who had yowled.

'If you are all quite finished,' he shouted to all the chatting cats, 'we'll begin the gathering.'

As if they had been put under a spell, all the cats fell eerily silent.

'Good.' Pinestar nodded. He turned to Pebblestar, who stepped forward beside him. 'Pebblestar will give her report first.'

The report was quite the uneventful one. Apparently, all the Clans had been thriving because of good weather and very plentiful prey. Shadepetal and Toadc;aw hadn't been so sure about ShadowClan: they had looked extremely scrawny. Nevertheless, everything was going very smoothly, until Rootstar stepped up at least to make his report.

Shadepetal had been mentally preparing herself for this moment. She knew there was going to be a _lot_ of noise, so she had been ready for that. However, she could never have been prepared for what truly took place.

Roostar opened his mouth to speak. 'ThunderClan have, like the other Clans, been thriving. StarClan has blessed us.' He curled his tail over his paws neatly. 'There is not much to report on the matter of ThunderClan's survival, for I believe that it is in safe paws. There is, however, something that I believe is in order to celebrate.'

Shadepetal breathed in deeply, and stole a glance at Toadclaw. She saw to her confusion that there was a flicker of doubt in his eyes, as well as regret.

Rootstar smiled warmly, and raised his voice considerably. 'Shadepetal has finally taken a mate!'

* * *

**Wahey! Chapter complete!**

**Hope you enjoyed it. Please RR...**


	4. Chapter 4

**Author's Note: Ahh… I love it when I finally finish a chapter. **

**Here's to your reviews! Thank you all! I love you guys!**

**Sorry, but I got so many this chapter that I don't think I have enough time to reply to them all. Just thank you all. You're awesome. Swag. :)**

**So yeah, enjoy it while it's here. The Curse of Beauty Chapter Four.**

* * *

**The Curse of Beauty**

**Chapter Four:**

Redpelt purred for what felt the first time in seasons.

She and Shadepetal sat in their usual spot beneath the leader's den, sharing tongues in the late afternoon sun. It was such a simple moment, but she felt like her heart would shrivel and burn if the moment ended. Shadepetal's eyes glimmered as they talked, and Redpelt knew that it meant a lot to her best friend as well.

Ever since the gathering that had taken place several sunrises ago, where Rootstar had announced to all the Clans that Shadepetal was now Toadclaw's mate, Redpelt had found that life had surprisingly got a lot better. Because other toms had suddenly had the _terrifying _realisation that Shadepetal was no longer on the "market", the chasing and harassing of Shadepetal had become somewhat less frequent. Also, Redpelt's confinement to camp had ended, meaning that she could go out of camp again! It had helped her to calm down and not be so restless. Instead of the melancholy attitude that she had adjusted to over the last moon, her usual fiery personality had returned.

Even more miraculous, Toadclaw had seemingly backed off a little.

When she had first realised it, Redpelt had found it difficult to actually believe that Toadclaw had generally stopped stalking Shadepetal as much. Some of the things he did hadn't changed, like bringing her prey at mealtimes and chatting with her regurlarly, but no longer did he follow her around and keep tabs on her all the time. This had allowed Redpelt and Shadepetal's friendship to develop once more. Because of the little amount of time they had been able to spend together over the course of the previous moon, their connection had wavered, but now it had returned to it's usual strength. They spent more time together now; going for walks and sharing tongues, as they were doing now.

Suddenly, Redpelt felt herself awake fro her day-dream, and she turned back around to face Shadepetal. She blushed a little when she saw that her best friend was staring at her. She wasn't really sure why. 'What is it?' She asked.

Shadepetal shrugged quickly and turned her head. She began to groom herself self-consciously. 'Nothing.'

There idleness, however, was interrupted by a sudden yowl from the High-Ledge. Both she-cats turned their heads to see Rootstar standing just outside the lichen entrance to his den, his gaze fixed upon Shadepetal.

'Shadepetal!' His voice echoed.

Redpelt eyes contracted and she felt a sudden apprehension made her fur stand on edge. Rootstar hadn't exactly had good news whenever he had invited Shadepetal to his den before. Redpelt remembered one time before when he had called for Shadepetal and suggested she became Toadclaw's mate. He hadn't really seemed to take her firm answer of "NO!" very seriously, and, five sunrises later, the incident where Rootstar had announced Shadepetal was his son's mate had take place. Redpelt hoped Shadepetal didn't have any unpleasant surprises in store for her.

Shadepetal looked just as puzzled as Redpelt for a second: the two of them exchanged glances. She seemed to be looking for some kind of guidance from her best friend. Shadepetal obviously hadn't forgotten her previous visit to Rootstar's den, just like Redpelt. The ruddy brown she-cat shrugged, before flicking her tail and gesturing for her friend to go up to Rootstar. She knew that she couldn't exactly protest… through experience.

Shadepetal got up and padded away from their spot and made her way up the High-Ledge towards her leader. Redpelt stared after he, feeling somewhat uncomfortable. An odd burning sensation began in her heart- a fierce worry for Shadepetal.

As soon as her friend disappeared after Rootstar into his den, she got up, her eyes searching around the ThunderClan camp. She was looking for Toadclaw in the huge mass of ThunderClan cats. _Maybe he'll know what Rootstar wants with Shadepetal. _She thought.

Soon enough she noticed him, surrounded by a group of friends, sitting in the looming shadow of the warrior's den. She stormed over, not caring how she heard a few jeering yowls echo from some of Toadclaw's friends: Toadclaw himself, however, did not jeer.

'Toadclaw.' She said, once she had reached the group. She ignored the teasing smiles upon the tom's faces. 'I need to talk to you.'

An expression of surpass crossed Toadclaw's face. He glanced at his little gang; all of them seemed just as surprised as he was. One of them murmured something into Toadclaw's ear, something which Redpelt didn't quite catch, but he shrugged and ignored it.

Redpelt herself felt surprised that he hadn't questioned what she asked, but she didn't protest. Toadclaw got up ad she lead him away into a quieter corner of the ThunderClan camp, where they could talk properly.

'What's this about, Redpelt?' He said, impatiently, before the hair on the back of his back rose apprehensively. 'I haven't been making any advances on Shadepetal if you're asking about-'

'I'm not talking about that.' She snapped, her tail flicking. 'I'm asking about why our _admirable_ leader Rootstar has just called Shadepetal to his den for one of his little "chit-chats".'

Toadclaw sat there for a moment, looking emotionless, before shock spread across his face. 'What?' His voice was just above a coarse whisper. 'No!' He shook his head. 'He promised he wouldn't!'

Redpelt felt a burning sensation in her stomach. The look on Toadclaw's face told her this was not, in any circumstances, good. It looked like he knew what he had called her in for, but hadn't thought it was actually going to happen. 'Toadclaw.' She said, her voice getting a little quieter and less confident. 'Wha- what is it?'

He looked up at her gravely. 'Rootstar's asking Shadepetal if she's going to have my kits.'

* * *

Shadepetal burst out of Rootstar's den, not really sure what she was feeling. It was somewhere in the middle of absolute disgust and horror, and also confusion and strong disbelief. _But I thought… Toadclaw had changed. I thought he wasn't suggesting things like that to Rootstar anymore..._

She didn't know what it was, but for some reason, over the past moon, Shadepetal had thought she'd detected a change in Toadclaw. In the way he treated not only her but other cats as well. In the way he cared for her. But- but this! _No. _She snarled at herself. _I can't believe you fell for his little trick! He's just being kinder to try and make you be his mate._

Unknowingly, she unsheathed her claws and scraped them across the rocks on the way down from the High-Ledge in her fury. The horrible screeching noise made many other cats turn to face her. She hissed at them, her eyes searching through the crowd for one cat in particular. Redpelt.

And Toadclaw was with her.

She smirked and ran over to them, making sure they could see the anger she was feeling. Toadclaw winced and seemed to back away a little, whereas Redpelt immediately stepped forward, her eyes taking on a comforting note. 'Shadepetal-' She began. Shadepetal could tell from the shock on her face that she knew as well.

But she walked right past the cat she loved. She had to admit, it was the first time she had totally ignored Redpelt for awhile. She focused instead on Toadclaw.

As soon as he realised she was heading straight for him, Toadclaw took a small step towards her. 'Look Shadepetal.' He began, desperately. 'I didn't decide this to happen-'

But Shadepetal wasn't having any of it. _Stop lying to me!_ She thought internally, before stepping forward, claws unsheathed and hitting him straight across the face.

Toadclaw stared at Shadepetal in shock, as did the rest of ThunderClan, and Redpelt. Even Shadepetal herself had to admit, she wasn't a violent cat, but when the pleasure of what he had just done soaked through her, she smirked. _I've wanted to do that to your smug little face for ages, Toadclaw. _

Toadclaw stayed silent for a few more moments (as did the rest of the cats in ThunderClan. Rootstar himself had emerged form his den). The scratch on his face began to bleed. 'What in StarClan's name was that for!' He shouted at her.

'Everything.' Shadepetal retorted, before hitting him across the face _again._ Toadclaw dropped into a defensive stance to avoid being struck again. 'Every time you harassed me, suggested things to do with me, and now, especially this!'

Shadepetal discovered she was breathing heavily. Oh StarClan… she had wanted to do that for so long. And in the lake's name did it feel good. Especially in these circumstances. She was just about to raise her paw again, when suddenly she felt another paw lock around her own, preventing her from striking Toadclaw once more.

Shadepetal turned around and found it was Redpelt. Though her posture was soft, her eyes were serious and firm. 'Shadepetal. That's enough.' She said. 'He's had it. That's enough.'

The beautiful jet-black she-cat locked eyes with her best friend, and stared into the amber pools of Redpelt's eyes. There beauty and majesty calmed her somewhat, but still she could feel a burning rage in her body. And now, he felt something else. The desire to go away. The urge to run out of camp and never return.

It was an odd sensation. She had never felt it before: Shadepetal diverted her gaze from Redpelt and stared out into the forest. Suddenly, she felt like the trees were pulling her away from the place which she previously called home. Rootstar's suggestion had seemingly struck a note inside her. One that made her fantasise and dream. And to be honest… it didn't feel like a bad idea.

Almost ignoring everything that had she had done in the past few seconds, she shook off Redpelt's paw and dashed out of the camp at full speed. Straight after her, she heard the paw steps of Redpelt charging after her. 'Wait!' Redpelt called. 'Shadepetal. Stop!'

But she didn't.

She found that she couldn't.

* * *

As Redpelt chased Shadeetal out into the forest, away from the ThunderClan camp, she found herself reflecting on what Shadepetal had just done. And how, suddenly, everything that Redpelt had thought was Shadepetal had just evaporated into thin air in a matter of seconds. All of a sudden, she had just become a monster. Snarling and shouting in a fit of rage, and tying to get revenge on everyone and everything that had done her wrong. Even now, as she chased her through the undergrowth, Redpelt felt that the cat she was chasing wasn't Shadepetal… or at least, wasn't Shadepetal at that moment. _What's happened to you?_

But now, Redpelt knew that the fitness of a cat who spent all of her time out of camp, and a cat who hardly left the camp at all would start to come into effect. Redpelt quickly began to catch up with her friend, until she was all but by her side. 'Shadepetal!' She said to her friend. 'Please, stop!'

But Shadepetal carried on as if she couldn't hear her. There was that odd burning in her eyes once more. The rebellion and carelessness which she had never seen before. It was like they just refused to listen to sense, and they would only listen to sense if it hit them straight in the face.

As it happened, that was just what took place. Redpelt leaped in front of her best friend, hoping that would make her stop, but of course, it didn't, and the two she-cats rolled over each other on the grass as Shadepetal ran into Redpelt. The fiery red she-cat grunted as her friend's full weight collided into her stomach, but he resisted; holding Shadepetal done so that she couldn't escape from her grasp.

In the next second, the two cats were lying in a heap on the ground, with Redpelt lying firmly on top of Shadepetal pinning her. 'Shadepetal!' She yowled, straight into her friend's face. 'STOP NOW.'

In the next second, Redpelt saw something she would never forget.

It wasn't something amazingly magical nor stunning, but the few seconds would be etched in her memory forever. As soon as her eyes locked onto Shadepetal's she saw the strangest change she had ever seen come over Shadepetal. In the chase, her eyes had been full of rage, like a monster, but it seemed that Hyde was transforming back into Dr Jekyll. The usual kind beauty calm back into Shadepetal's sky-blue eyes, and her bristling black fur settled back down. Redpelt couldn't look away. The two she-cats eyes stared into the others, as if searching for something.

And suddenly, the most ferocious blush came over Shadepetal. It wasn't just a small flowering of red on her cheeks, it was so huge it was almost laughable. You could see the pink of it right through her black fur, that would usually cover it up. It didn't this time. Redpelt wasn't really sure why, all she knew was that she suddenly found herself purring at her friend. 'Blushing, I see?' She commented, breaking the intense silence.

'Um… uh, yes.' Shadepetal said, the blush not leaving her cheeks. The innocence and odd naivety and returned to her eyes. Her eyes darted desperately and uncomfortably. 'Listen, there's no chance you could um, you know, get off me?' This comment made Shadepetal blush even more.

Redpelt felt confused for a moment, but she obeyed and Shadepetal scrambled to her feet and broke into a fit of embarrassed washing. Redpelt didn't let go of her paw though. She wasn't going to let Shadepetal dash off again.

And now, she confronted her. Shadepetal looked up as Redpelt pressed her paw down upon Shadepetal's, softly but firmly. 'Shadepetal…' she sighed. 'What happened there?'

Shadepetal looked away, guilt showing on her face. 'I'm not really sure.' She murmured. 'It was like something just took over me.'

_It certainly looked like that. _Redpelt thought, but she didn't say that aloud. Instead she said, 'I have to say, Shadepetal. You gave me a real scare there. I thought you were running away there.'

As soon as Shadepetal winced, it occurred to Redpelt that that might've been exactly what her friend was intending. The thought made her flick her tail across her best friend's ears comfortingly. 'Red Petal?' She whispered.

Shadepetal nodded immediately. Redpelt stepped back a little and reached out her paw, allowing Shadepetal to lock her paws around her's. The claws interlinked, and she heard Shadepetal breath out heavily for a moment. Redpelt's best friend's eyes were closed tightly, but as soon as Redpelt drew away, breaking the contact and ending the Red Petal, Shadepetal's eyes opened.

Revealing the most beautiful emotion and smile that Redpelt had ever seen in Shadepetal's eyes. It glowed like the sun in darkness, and Redpelt felt an element of shock enter her system. She'd never seen Shadepetal eyes filled with that sort of emotion before. Redpelt couldn't quite fix what it was.

And then Shadepetal spoke. 'Thank you.' She said, beaming.

Redpelt's eyes contracted. 'For what?' She asked hesitantly.

'Everything!' Shadepetal echoed, her ears pricking. She stepped forward a little. Redpelt looked up just as the sun rose over a line of trees in the distance. The sun glowed down into the forest where they were, lighting up Shadepetal's pelt with sunlight. 'Everything you've done for me in the past.'

Redpelt felt like she was missing something. _Where has this come from? _She wondered, staring at her friend oddly. _Did I do anything that was special? I usually have to comfort her, but this has never happened before..._

_'_I really mean it, you know.' Shadepetal spoke again, taking yet another step closer. Almost a little too close for Redpelt's comfort, but the fiery red she-cat didn't pull away. In fact, there was odd sensation in her stomach that seemed to pull her closer! 'You've never left my side, not once. You're the best friend I've ever had.'

_Correction: I'm the only friend you've ever had. _The thought crept into her mind before she could stop it, but again, she kept her thoughts to herself. Now, Shadepetal was getting alarmingly close. So close that the beautiful she-cat could almost touch her.

'Um… Shadepetal…' She said hesitantly. Redpelt found that her heart was fluttering like a trapped bird. Because Shadepetal was co close seemed to be striking a chord on her heart, but she didn't know why. _Shadepetal's my best friend! _She thought. _Why is this happening? _'You couldn't, you know, um, back off a bit?'

As soon as those words left her lips, Redpelt instantly felt guilty. And the terrible thing was, she didn't know why. She didn't know why her whole body seemed to be on fire. Something was screeching at her inside, telling her to apologise and let Shadepetal get close to her face once more. _Why should I? _Redpelt argued with herself. _She's my friend! I don't know why she was getting that close anyw-_

She stopped thinking as soon as she saw the emotion in Shadepetal's eyes. It was like her attractive friend's whole life had just been burnt away into shards of a broke dream. Shadepetal was still standing as close as she had been, but she'd stopped staring at Redpelt, and the smile on her face had completely evaporated. Suddenly, Redpelt felt terrible, but again, she didn't understand. There was something slipping from her grasp. What had just happened? Why was what she just said so awful? Shadepetal had just been standing a little too close to her, and she'd ask her to step away from her. Shadepetal had asked that of her many times, hadn't she?

And suddenly, Shadepetal was gone. The she-cat had ran away, disappearing into the forest. Redpelt kept staring at the spot where her friend had been standing, trying to find something. Searching for an answer. _What just happened?_ She almost shouted. All of a sudden, her legs felt weak. Redpelt sunk to the ground, feelings she didn't know what meant threatening to overwhelm her. What she had asked her friend to do was something so little; a simple act of stepping back!

Well then why did her action seem so huge?

Almost without knowing what she was doing, Redpelt got up. Her guts felt like they had been tied into a knot. Slowly, with her tail in-between her legs, the she-cat got up and made her way back to camp.

* * *

The rest of the day past without much event. Redpelt sat in the camp, feeling sorry for herself, and staring straight forward. There was a robin in-between her legs, but she didn't touch it. Redpelt just spent every moment of the rest of the day reflecting on the events that had taken place earlier. Shadepetal still hadn't returned, and normally, she might've found the strength to worry about her, but Redpelt was too numb to stand up.

It was almost night when she heard another cat sitting down beside her. She turned her head, and saw that it was Toadclaw. If she wasn't so solemn, she would probably have been both hostile and apprehensive, but again, she felt as if she didn't have the energy.

'Sorry Redpelt,' he began slowly. 'I was just wondering if you'd seen Shadepetal after you came back to camp…?'

Redpelt didn't address the question. All she did was lower her head and muzzle the top of the robin sadly. She didn't look up at him, though she did steal a glance at his face. The scratch marks on his face were still visible.

'You do know that I'm not going to ever forgive you.' Redpelt said abruptly. 'For the way you treated Shadepetal.' She finally looked up at him and looked him in the eye. She remembered all the hate in her body that she'd kept locked up for so long, focused on the tomcat in front of her. She remembered all the times she'd wanted to hit him while he was sexually harassed Shadepetal.

Toadclaw didn't seem at all surprised. 'I know. I never thought you would. To be honest, I'm not sure I can forgive myself-'

'And I don't believe you either.' She snapped, her tone becoming sharp.

'What?'

'I don't believe the little act you've got going.' Redpelt got to her paws, but didn't raise her voice. 'I don't believe that in the space of what, a moon?, you'd change to become a completely different cat. I don't believe it. No: I refuse to believe it. Why would you change, huh? What made you?' Redpelt said, before snorting and turning away. 'It happened way too fast.'

Toadclaw was silent for a moment. There was a note of regret in his voice, but his voice didn't waver when he spoke. 'Love is putting someone else's needs before you.' (**Author's Note: Yes guys, I'm using a quote from Frozen. I'm not gonna rant about it, because I hate the movie, but that quote really fits this moment.) **

Redpelt's ears pricked. 'What?'

'Something I learnt in the space of a moon.' He retorted. He hesitated. 'Something that I suppose I learnt from StarClan.'

She frowned. _StarClan? What do my ancestors have to do with this? _

She repeated this question to Toadclaw, and he was just about to open his mouth, and a scream echoed through the camp.

Instantly, both Toadclaw and Redpelt were alert. The noise had come from an apprentice standing by the entrance to the camp. He was staring at the entrance. Redpelt followed his gaze upwards and then saw a cat that was almost unrecognisable in the entrance. She was covered in scratches and and blood that wasn't necessarily her's. Her pelt was ragged and torn in places, and her ears had been bitten badly, but Redpelt's breath nearly fell out of her chest when she realised who she was staring at.

It was Shadepetal.

The new few minutes happened in a daze. All Redpelt knew was that at one point she was running forward, trying to help her best friend, and then she was being pushed back by a crowd of cats all trying to get to her. Redpelt reached forward with her paws, trying desperately to reach her friend, but she couldn't. She was always out of her grasp. It was like she was trying to reach StarClan, but the Dark Forest was pulling her back. Despair almost hit her, when another cat finally reached Shadepetal and carried her down to the medicine cat's den. Instantly, Redpelt tried to run forward once more and get her friend, but the medicine cat pushed her back, saying that she couldn't have visitors at that moment.

_Foxdung to visitors! _Redpelt yowled in her mind. _She's the cat that I l- _Her thought was cut short when she discovered what she'd been about to think. Instantly, confusion hit her, and she backed away from Shadepetal. She grabbed her head and yowled loudly, but no heard her. They were to busy being focused upon Shadepetal. She wanted the confusion to end, but it wouldn't. Her mind was filled with smoke.

Slowly, he turned around and padded away, feeling lost, into the Warrior's Den. She didn't really know where she was when she fell into the nearest nest, that wasn't necessarily her's and fell into a dreamless sleep.

* * *

The moonlight was bright and silent. It glowed down into the ThunderClan camp, illuminating the smooth rock surface enigmatically. Nearly every cat was asleep, lulled by the day's dramatic events, but one single cat was awake. With a kind of mission on her mind.

Redpelt entered the medicine cat den silently. Her amber eyes glowed in the darkness, searching around for the cat she was looking for. Shadepetal. Soon she located her target in a corner of the medicine den, lying in a luxurious nest of feathers and moss. Her body was lined with scratches and wounds from what Redelt had found out later was an encounter with ShadowClan she-cats. She'd crossed the border accidentally, and had been found by a patrol consisting of only ShadowClan she-cats, who unfortunately, had very different opinions of Shadepetal to the toms of their Clan.

Redpelt sighed and sat down beside the nest of her friend, an exasperated look entering her eyes. 'Shadepetal.' She whispered quietly, ensuring that she wouldn't wake the medicine cat. 'Can you hear me?' She knew it was ridiculous, but still. Redpelt knew she had to tell her something.

'I understand now.'

In her sleep, it was like Redpelt had been hit over the head with a boulder. Suddenly, everything made sense. Everything that had happened earlier today- everything she'd felt of late in her heart. It had become clearer than crystal.

'The only question is whether you…' She sighed again. 'The only question is whether you understand as well.'

The thought made her chuckle a little. _I don't think so. _Redpelt thought. _I doubt anyone has ever understood what I understand now. I doubt this has ever happened before since the dawn of time. _

She didn't know what it was, but for some reason, Redpelt felt like what she'd found out was for some reason wrong. She knew it wasn't but… well, it just seemed like it was. They were in the same Clan, so technically speaking it wasn't against the Warrior Code at all. What she thought was was that other cats would probably frown upon it.

It worried her. Toadclaw crossed her mind. _What would he think if he knew I was in here, making some sort of admittance speech? _Redpelt mused. _I doubt he'd be happy._

'Love is putting some else's needs before you.' Redpelt murmured. The fiery red she cat doubted she'd ever know what that truly meant. Love played such a huge part of Clan life. It dictated the survival of a Clan more than anything this. More than hunting. More than fighting. Maybe, if this crazy idea somehow worked, she'd know what Toadclaw meant.

_That doesn't matter, though, does it? _Redpelt told herself. _You're here to tell Shadepetal something._

It was stupid- since Shadepetal was asleep- but she was going to do it anyway.

_Shadepetal… please don't… of for StarClan's sake. Just don't hate me for this. I don't know what I'd do if I lost you. _

Redpelt leaned forward and closed her eyes. Her voice wavered uncontrollably.

_I love you._

* * *

**:D**

**Nice ending, huh?**

**PLEASE RR!**


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